Slow Down
by BroomballKraken
Summary: "You see, there's this woman, and I've...well, I'm in love with her." he said, a blush forming on his cheeks. Lissa's stomach dropped as she clenched her jaw to prevent herself from making an anguished groan. He was in love with someone else. Stahl/Lissa


Lissa sighed a content sigh as she gazed up at the cloud-spotted sky. She was lying on her back in the short grass, her arms folded above her head as she used her hands as a pillow. With the war won against Plegia, time seemed to slow to a crawl, allowing for more time to just relax. There was still a lot to do though. Lissa was in the process of visiting small villages throughout Ylisse to assist in any rebuilding efforts and to get a count of what food and other resources each village still needed. Luckily, she wasn't alone; her partner-in-crime had decided to come with her.

"Ooooh, Stahl! That one looks like a bunny!" Lissa said as she extended her arm above her and pointed at the cloud. Stahl was lying next to her, and he shifted his head to look where she was pointing.

"Yeah, it does! It almost looks like Panne's taguel form." he said, smiling brightly as he turned to look at her. Her heart raced at the beautiful sight. No other man could affect her heart as he did every time he smiled at her. She had know it for a long time now; she was madly in love with Stahl.

She wanted to tell him how she felt, but she found herself hesitating and she didn't know why. Maybe it was the chance that he would reject her and their current relationship would change for the worse. Or maybe she was just waiting for the perfect moment for a confession. Maybe today would contain that perfect moment. She would have to wait and see.

"Ah, Lissa, I forgot to tell you." Stahl said as he sat up, brushing the grass from his hair. Lissa also sat up and looked at him curiously, tilting his head as she waited for him to continue. "Before we left Ylisstol, I got a letter from my brother. I finally had a chance to read it last night."

"That's great Stahl!" Lissa said excitedly as she clapped her hands together, the movement causing her pigtails to fall a bit out of their ties. Stahl laughed and reached over, his hands moving to her hair as he help readjust her hair. Lissa gulped and blushed slightly, savoring his closeness as she waited for him to finish. He fussed with her hair a bit longer before grinning with satisfaction as he pulled away. The look on her face must have betrayed how flustered she was, because Stahl blushed and scratched his nose in embarrassment.

"Er, sorry Lissa, I probably should have asked first before just invading your space like that." Stahl said, adverting his gaze. Lissa couldn't help but giggle; he was just too cute.

"It's alright Stahl. If it was anyone but you I may have been upset." she said. She noticed Stahl's face flushed a bit, so she quickly changed the subject. "What did your brother say?"

"Ah, right." Stahl said, a sweet smile returning to his face. "Well, he thanked me again for the butterfly scales that we found him. He also said that he's glad the war is over and that I'm safe. He – and our parents – have been worried sick about me. He's just kind of bummed that we're not traveling to other countries anymore. He's working on some more potions that need more rare ingredients." He chuckled as Lissa rolled her eyes and groaned.

"Ugh, really? Can't your bother go and gather his own ingredients? Why does he bug you to do it all the time?" Lissa said with a frown, her eyes narrowing in annoyance.

"Oh, he's usually cooped up in his lab all the time, too busy doing his research. I've tried telling him to get out more, but he's pretty stubborn and set in his ways." Stahl said, shrugging his shoulders.

"Well, did he say anything else?" Lissa said, noting that if she ever met Stahl's brother that she would have to chew him out for making Stahl his errand boy.

"Yeah, actually." Stahl said with a nervous laugh as he adverted his gaze. Lissa raised an eyebrow at his odd behavior and waited for him to continue. "You see, I asked him for some advice in my last letter."

"Oh? What kind of advice?" Lissa asked as she stared intently at Stahl.

"You see, there's this woman, and I've...well, I'm in love with her." he said, a blush forming on his cheeks. Lissa's stomach dropped as she clenched her jaw to prevent herself from making an anguished groan. He was in love with someone else. She waited too long. She recovered quickly and she forced a smile to cross her face, even though she was sobbing uncontrollably on the inside.

"That's...great Stahl! Do I, ah, know this woman? What's she like?" Lissa said, trying to keep her voice from wavering and betraying her true emotions.

"Well, you might know her." he said with a smile. He looked up at the sky, his eyes scanning the clouds as they passed. "She's an amazing woman. Beautiful and kind. She's also mischievous and snarky. She loves to have fun, and she'll sometimes skip out on her duties to do something more exciting. She has a passion for healing and helping others, and I'm always so happy when I'm around her."

Lissa felt her heart slowly breaking as some moisture threatened to build up in her eyes, but she quickly blinked it away. Gods, she sounded so perfect for him, how could she ever compete with that?

"Why haven't you told her yet, then?" Lissa asked quietly, her gazed shifting to the ground. She felt as if she would burst into tears if she tried looking him in the eyes right now.

"I'm a bit hesitant to tell her." he said, frowning slightly. "She's...of noble birth. And I'm just a commoner. I fee like I might not be good enough for her..." His voice dropped in volume as he trailed off and looked at the ground.

"That's bullshit!" Lissa suddenly exclaimed, narrowing her eyes as anger suddenly built up in her. "Don't you sell yourself short like that Stahl, you dummy! Any woman would be lucky to be with someone like you." He heart ached at the thought. "If she is worried about something as silly as noble status, then she's the one who's not good enough for you." Lissa took a few deep breaths, her anger slowly subsiding.

Stahl stared at her in silence for a moment, before he suddenly burst into laughter. Lissa blinked at him, confused. Stahl laughed so hard that tears leaked out of the corners of his eyes, and he wiped them away when he finally composed himself.

"Oh, Lissa, I'm so happy to hear you say that!" Stahl said happily, laughing again as he ran a hand through his hair.

"Why?" Lissa said, raising an eyebrow suspiciously.

"Because," he said softly, taking her hands in his, "The woman that I've fallen in love with...is you, Lissa."

"W-what?!" Lissa sputtered, her jaw dropping in shock. She stared at her hands that were now grasping his, trying to sort through the many emotions running through her brain right now. He breath caught in her throat as she felt his fingers brush her cheek, and she looked back up at his handsome, smiling face.

"I love you, Lissa. I...I have for a long time now. I didn't tell you sooner because I was worried that I wasn't good enough for you. It seems silly now that I say it out loud though." Stahl said with a shrug. Lissa narrowed her eyes at him and reached up, flicking him on the forehead with her index finger.

"Ow, what was that for?" Stahl said, yelping in pain as his hands reflexively went to his forehead.

"Stahl, you big ninny!" Lissa said, pouting as she crossed her arms over her chest. "You made me think you were in love with someone else! I was so upset that I was about to cry!" Her emotions boiled over and some tears trickled down her face. "Because I'm in love with you too, Stahl. I love you so much."

Stahl chuckled and reached out, wrapping his arms around Lissa and pulling her into his lap. He reached up and brushed her tears away. "I'm sorry Lissa, I didn't realize that I would make you upset. You really love me too?" he asked.

"Of course I do. I wouldn't joke about something like that." she said, her pout turning into a smile as she wrapped her arms around his neck. "I'm still kinda mad that you made me cry, though?"

"How can I make it up to you?" he asked, smiling as his arms moved to rest on the small of her back.

"Well," Lissa said, her voice dropping to a whisper as she leaned her face close to his, until her nose brushed against his, "I guess I could forgive you, if you let me kiss you."

Stahl chuckled. "I think I can manage that." he whispered back, his voice dropping low, making Lissa's heart skip a beat. She giggled and pressed her lips to his, finally kissing him after wanting to do so for so long.

After they finally parted, Lissa giggled again and ran her hands through Stahl's messy green hair. "I guess I'll have to say thanks to your brother when I finally meet him." she said with a grin.

"Why?" Stahl asked, smiling as he placed and light kiss on her cheek.

"Well, you said you asked him for advice, and it obviously worked. What did he say anyway?"

"He said 'Stop being an idiot and tell her already. Life's too short to leave anything important unsaid. And if she's as amazing as you say she is, then someone else will swoop in and take her if you don't act soon.' I glad I listened to him." Stahl said with a laugh.

"Your brother is rather blunt, isn't he." Lissa said, her laughter joining his.

"Yeah, he never really hides what he's thinking. He's the person to go to if you want an honest opinion on anything."

"I'll keep that in mind."

Lissa turned around in his lap and pushed her back up against his chest. Stahl wrapped his arms around her and set his chin on her shoulder, rubbing his cheek against hers as she giggled.

"Ah Stahl, I'm so happy. I can't wait to tell Chrom about us when we return to Ylisstol." Lissa said as she closed her eyes.

"I'll need to tell my brother the good news too. Chrom isn't the over protective brother type, is he? He won't try to kill me or anything, right?" Stahl said with a chuckle.

"Oh please, Chrom is a big softy. And he's known you forever, Stahl. He knows you'll never hurt me." Lissa said, rolling her eyes.

"I guess you're right. Should we get going now? We should reach the next village by tomorrow if we leave now."

"Nah." Lissa said, shaking her head. "We've got all the time in the world now. The war is done. We can finally slow down and take our time. I just wanna sit here with you for a while."

Stahl chuckled and placed another kiss on her cheek. "I'm perfectly okay with that, my love."


End file.
